Ball State University Athletics
Women's Basketball Releases 2009-10 Schedule
August 20, 2009 | Women's Basketball
"The non-conference schedule reflects the strategy and commitment to position our program for postseason competition," said Ball State head women's basketball coach Kelly Packard. "This schedule is a blend of opponents with postseason experience, and it also exposes our roster to various styles of play. Our program finished the 2008-2009 season with the Mid-American Conference's top RPI and strength of schedule ranking, both key criteria in postseason considerations."
The Cardinals will face five teams in non-conference action that were postseason participants in 2008-09. Wisconsin-Green Bay and Evansville both went to the NCAA Tournament last season, while Illinois State, Duquesne and Butler played in the WNIT.
Ball State opens the season at Big Ten foe Michigan Nov. 13 at 7 p.m. The Cardinals return to Worthen Arena for their home opener against Western Kentucky Monday, Nov. 16 at 7 p.m. BSU will then host Northern Arizona (Nov. 21) and Valparaiso (Nov. 24) before heading to North Dakota to take on North Dakota State (Nov. 27) and North Dakota (Nov. 29). The Cardinals then continue their three-game roadswing taking on Missouri, Dec. 5.
The Cardinals will host Wisconsin-Green Bay (Dec. 10) and Illinois State (Dec. 13) before rounding out non-conference action with trips to Duquesne (Dec. 19), Evansville (Dec. 22) and Butler (Dec. 30). Ball State's last nonconference game will be at home against Southern Illinois-Edwardsville in the middle of league play Jan. 15.
Ball State will take on Western Michigan at home Wednesday, Jan. 6, for its MAC opener, and the Cardinals will close league play at home against Central Michigan Tuesday, March 2.
The Cardinals posted their best ever overall and home records, 26-9 and 14-1, respectively in 2008-09. Ball State also had its best MAC showing, turning in a 14-2 ledger. BSU won its first ever MAC Tournament Championship and had its first NCAA Tournament berth, where the Cardinals defeated national power Tennessee in the first round.
